Complete brake job - insights?

[yossarian19]

Originally Posted by Dan in Pasadena

Do it one side at a time, not front then rear.

Reason? So that when you get one corner apart, and despite your photos, sketches, mental notes, you're not QUITE certain how it goes back? You can simply pull the drum off the other side to be CERTAIN

As for front vs. rear? Yes they're likely nearly the same - emphasis on nearly. You know already that they're at least a little different because if nothing else the rears have provisions for attaching the emergency brake cables. None of us will be over your shoulder when you're doing this so wouldn't you much rather know for CERTAIN that you've got an identical setup to check your work?
Posted via Mobile Device

^ This.
One corner at a time. Don't tear down the entire driver's side - you'll be at risk of mixing up parts as well as of being mentally overwhelmed by details to remember. I know it doesn't sound like much but when you get in there with however many moving parts that all need to go back precisely as they were - you don't want to remember the front AND the rear at the same time.
Driver's front. Passenger's front. Driver's rear. Passenger's rear. No extra parts are included in the vehicle. Clean everything. Lube as directed. DONT PANIC.

[Russell Ashley]

Originally Posted by 62lwbc10

Thanks guys, sorry if its a stupid question, but more than one of you has said to do one side at a time. So this means I should do the front and rear brakes on, say the drivers side first and then do the same on the pass side? I was thinking to do both fronts first, then do the rears. I take it from the comments that this is not correct? Whats the reason to do one side at a time?

There's no hard and fast rule on which one to do first. I've always done the fronts first and then the rears. I don't have a lift so I usually just raise one end of the car at a time when I'm doing a brake job.

[speesh]

Let me add my voice to the chorus-use a dual master!
Also, if you don't mind, where did you buy all the parts from, and where can I get automatic adjusters?
Posted via Mobile Device

[sqrlnts]

If I had to do it again I would probably go, new dual master and lines, then upgrade the front to disc and hell why I am there do the.......

It never ends. Take a good self assessmemnt, if you think you can live with the OEM drum stuff, rebuild the master and go. I have been daily driving my original rebuilt single master and original lines for some months now.

Have only slid up to about 3 stoplights with the rears locked up and smoking, no failures to date.

[62lwbc10]

Hey All, Well I thought I would give you an update. What a pain in the rear end it was to do the brakes!!! Took me and a buddy the better part of a day to do it. First of all, I guess I should have done more research becasue I bought new drums for the front, but then realised the hubs are attached, so I couldnt change out the front drums. Replacing the bearing was a real pain too, pounding out the old bearings and pressing in new ones. Thank God the front drums were in decent shape. Removing the read drums proved to be very difficult and we actually had to use a torch to heat up the centers near the hubs to get the drums off. So I did replace the rear drums which is good because the ones on there were scored badly. SO I now have a new master, new front bearings (Inner and outer roller type), new pads all around, new wheel cylinders all around, new brake hoses, new rear drums and of course all the springs, adjusters, etc. My pedal went from very soft to VERY hard (that sounded weird) with only a little play at the top. Oh yeah, I adjusted the e brake cables so now I have a solid e breake.

Was more work than I thought, but got it done. Thanks for all your input!

MD

[Rufton]

Congrats
It'll be cake 2nd time.

[mr48chev]

It's great to see that everything went well even though you had a bit of a fight with some of it. That part is more normal than you would think on old rigs that haven't been apart for years on end.